


Daisies

by orphan_account



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-10-23
Updated: 2018-10-27
Packaged: 2019-08-06 14:15:22
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 5
Words: 6,068
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16389257
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: The police say that Finn is dead, but Rey has been getting mysterious messages on her phone. Does her favorite teacher, Mr. Ren, know more than he's letting on?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [MalevolentReverie](https://archiveofourown.org/users/MalevolentReverie/gifts).



Rey clenched her teeth against the February wind. She was always cold, all winter long. It was cold at school where they never turned the heat up high enough and colder at home where there was no heat in the first place. Her jacket wasn’t meant for winters and her layers of flannel and cotton underneath held onto the chilled sweat of being worn day in and day out.

Before, she had at least had Finn. He had glowed, from his bright smile to his big bear hugs. The funeral lacked any trace of that light and warmth. Finn went missing about a month ago. At first they thought he’d run away, but then they found a body part in the woods. The police wouldn’t say which one. 

Rey’s mind stumbled when she imagined what Finn’s last moments must have been like: the crack of flesh, whatever monster had hurt him. Some part of her could see it all too clearly, exactly how it must have been.

The school bus rolled up and Rey shuffled to the middle of the rows, where the quiet kids sat. She stared out the window at the leafless roadside rolling by. In the summer she’d turn 16 and could drop out, start a new life. Until then, she just had to survive.

A hand touched her shoulder. Rey turned.

“Hey.” It was Rose. The two friends embraced and Rose sat down next to her. “How’s it going?”

“You know. How are you?”

“Pretty shitty. You were smart to skip school yesterday. Did your dad say anything?”

“Yeah. He’s such a fucking dick. I don’t really want to talk about it.”

“Ugh. I’m sorry, Rey. You know you can stay with us whenever. My mom is always talking about how you’re her third daughter.”

Rey managed an awkward smile. She wanted to stay at the Ticos more than anything, but whatever people might say, no one wants another hungry mouth to feed. If her foster dad had taught her anything, it was that. 

“Mr. Ren asked about you yesterday.” Mr. Ren was Rey’s shop class teacher. He was actually a big deal real estate developer in town, but taught the class as a kind of community service. In Rey’s opinion, he was smart enough that he could have taught any class in school. He knew everything, and he was really nice, too. Like once, when Rey said she wished that she had a robotics kit, Mr. Ren ordered three for the class. Another time, she mentioned that her bike had been run over by a car (Unkar’s drunk driving skills), and he convinced a local bike shop to donate a bunch of old bikes so that she could fix up a new one. 

“It was cool of him to come to the funeral.” Mr. Ren had driven Rey home, too. It was the first time he’d seen the trailer where she lived with Unkar, and Rey hadn’t missed the look of disgust on his face although he’d tried to hide it. She’d said her thanks and hopped out of his car quickly.

“Yeah. He’s worried about you.”

“I’ll be fine. I just wish they’d find him.” Rose knew who Rey meant: the killer. Finn’s body had never been recovered, and the police had no active leads on who might have taken him. The thought that he was still out there, that he could be right outside her window, kept Rey up at night.

“Me too.”

They rode the rest of the way to school in silence, holding hands. There was nothing else to say.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This story is heavily indebted to MalevolentReverie's "Growing Pains." But it's not as good! So check that out.
> 
> Would you like to see this go in a super dark, kinda dark, or mostly fluffy direction? Let me know in the comments.

At school, it was Valentine’s Day. Hearts and streamers were strung over the lockers where boys and girls wearing red clumped in sugar-fueled flirtation. Rey was sitting in class, tuning out the remedial algebra and daydreaming about her favorite fantasy, the one where Mr. Ren was her guardian instead of Unkar. Mr. Ren would come home late from a long day, and she would have cooked him the most incredible homemade feast. Then at the end of their dinner, she would tell him the big news: that she had made the honor roll. He would hug her and tell her that he was so proud of her and he was the luckiest dad around.

The buzz of her phone shook her out of her reverie. She peeked at the screen and her blood froze. It was a snap from Finn of a sunshine emoji, his symbol for her.

 _where are you? are you ok?_ , she typed frantically.

_Finn?_

_I love you so much_

_just tell me where you are_

_Finn????_

“How many times do I have to tell you guys not to text in class? Rey - hand it over.”

Rey stared up at her teacher in horror, speechless. “No, it’s - you don’t understand -”

“Whatever it is, it can wait twenty minutes.”

“No, Ms. Moran. It’s - it’s. I can’t.”

Rey’s eyes darted around the class, dumbly desperate for anyone who could help her. The teacher strode to her teach and grabbed the phone out of her hand.

“You kids and your devices.”

Rey felt the helplessness well into anger. She stood. “Give it back!  _Please_ , Ms. Moran.”

The teacher took a step back, giving her a strange look. “Take your seat, Rey, or you’re getting detention.”

All of the grief and helplessness of the past month and half reared into pure fury. Rey grabbed Ms. Moran’s arm and twisted it until the teacher made a strange yelping sound and the phone clattered to the floor. Rey snatched it and bolted.

Immediately, she tore off to the woods behind the school where people wouldn’t look for her. Would she be suspended? Kicked out? She didn’t care. Ice cold panic drenched her body. She opened her phone.

 _Finn please tell me you’re okay_ , she texted.

“Finn,” she whispered aloud. She realized that she was shaking.

Nothing nothing nothing.

+  +  +

Rey stayed like that until it was dark out and the buses had gone home. Her neck and knees hurt from being curled up against the cold. She wondered if she would sleep in the woods. There was nowhere else to go. Rose hadn’t texted her, which definitely meant that she hadn’t heard yet about what happened. Rey was afraid to call her, to call anyone who might take her phone away.

So she kept texting, refreshing the app. She could hear the way Finn said her name, the face he made when he spotted her in the cafeteria at lunchtime. She would wait for him, however long it took.

A loud crunch echoed deep in the woods. Rey’s senses instantly went on alert. It was probably a deer, she reasoned, or a branch falling. But some instinct told her to darken her phone, just in case.

The police said the murderer must have gotten Finn coming home from work. It occurred to Rey that the killer had probably visited these woods, had probably watched Finn at school. He would have seen her, too.

Another crunch. Was that one closer? Rey was so still, she hardly breathed.

Her phone buzzed in her fist.

Rey had to check. The screen was glaringly bright in the dark woods.

Rey choked back a sob. Another snaptext from Finn: a heart.

 _tell me where you are_ , she texted back.

“Here,” a voice said.

Rey’s head shot up so hard that it smacked against the tree trunk.

“You’re here, Rey. I was so worried.” Mr. Ren crouched down so that they were closer to eye level. “I heard about Ms. Moran today. What’s going on?”

Rey shook her head. She glanced down at her phone. Finn’s snap had disappeared again. Mr. Ren had surprised her so much that she’d missed her chance to screenshot it. Rey pressed the heels of her hands to her eyes in frustration.

“Hey there, hey,” a heavy hand tentatively stroked Rey’s hair, then she was leaving the ground, lifted by a pair of big arms.

“Shh. Shh, it’s okay.”” Mr. Ren held her to his chest, while she gripped her phone like it was a lifeline. “You’re freezing,” he muttered to himself.

He carried her across the yard and past the soccer fields to his car, then set her down in the passenger seat, turning the heat on blast. Rey looked at her phone again. Still nothing. She bit her lip. Mr. Ren watched her, brows furrowed, and sighed.

“Rey, is there someone you’d like me to call? Somewhere I can drive you?”

Rey bit her lip harder to keep it from quivering. No, of course there was no one. She was a white trash loser who attacked teachers and lived with a mean, drunk pawn broker in a nasty trailer park. She just shook her head.

“Okay, well I shouldn’t do this, but you’ve had a rough day, so we’re going to get some food in you. Then you can tell me what’s going on. Whenever you’re ready.”

Mr. Ren buckled Rey in and started driving. “What sounds good for dinner, kid? Your choice. Lobster? Steak? Chocolate cake? I’m at your mercy.”

He smiled, but Rey’s brain couldn’t process it. Finn. Where was Finn? What was happening to him right at this moment? Why was she in a car with her teacher? She swallowed. Her stomach felt sour.

“Um, I don’t want to put you to any trouble, Mr. Ren. I should probably go home.”

But they stopped at a Chinese buffet instead and Mr. Ren got a couple boxes of takeout while Rey waited in the car. Then they arrived at what Rey assumed was his apartment.

“Here we are.”

Rey felt a flutter of nerves as Mr. Ren led them up the stairs.

“After you.”

Rey didn’t know what to expect from Mr. Ren’s apartment. She knew he was rich, but didn’t really know what rich people’s homes were supposed to look like outside of movies. His place wasn’t ostentatious. It was just really  _nice._ Wood floors, high ceilings, plants everywhere, big windows, and lots of books. He walked into the clean, bright kitchen and suddenly Rey’s appetite came roaring back. Her stomach growled.

“Hungry after all?”

Rey nodded. She was starving. Her mouth was actually watering and honestly she couldn’t remember the last time she ate. “Thank you for dinner, Mr. Ren.”

He smiled at her. “Dig in.”


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The chapter after this one is going to be intense, fyi, and not for all audiences. Past that, I'm going to have to make a decision about where to pitch Kylo and Rey's relationship. Let me know in the comments if there is something in particular that you want to see.
> 
> Again, I am guessing that if you're reading this, you've already read MalevolentReverie's "Growing Pains" (and re-read it, if you're like me) but she is definitely the inspiration behind this story and why I'm writing at all!

They made plates for themselves and ate around the island. Mr. Ren had a beer, but only one, Rey noticed. Not like Unkar. She was nervous to be alone with him, scared that she'd say something dumb and the dream would end, but he was easy to talk to, and for a little while, Rey forgot about Finn and everything else. They spoke about projects in shop class and he made her giggle when he told her about the time he nearly burned down his house with a chemistry experiment in high school. She felt the warmth come back to her toes, fingers, and cheeks. She took off her coat and would have taken off her sweatshirt and flannel, too, but she was worried she’d smell bad.

They put their dishes in the dishwasher and he pulled vanilla ice cream out of the freezer, scooping it into bowls and sprinkling chocolate on top. When he walked over with their sundaes, Rey noticed that the sprinkles were in the shape of little hearts. 

“Oh my gosh, Mr. Ren, I should go home!” she flushed.

“Why? What’s wrong?” he froze.

“Valentine’s Day - the sprinkles reminded me - I must have spoiled your night, because of my stupid… because of what I did to Ms. Moran.” Rey felt a wave of shame at the memory. “I’m so sorry. I’m such a freak. I’m really sorry, Mr. Ren.”

“Look at me, ‘freak’,” he teased. “You haven’t done anything wrong. Pretend you were in my shoes. You have the choice between helping a student who might be in trouble or hanging out with a friend who you can see anytime. What would you do?”

“I’d help the student,” Rey mumbled, blushing. She felt so self-conscious.

“I know you would. That’s one of the reasons why you’re my favorite,” he smiled. Rey’s eyes met his, then darted down again, flustered. 

“You wouldn’t know this,” he continued, hesitating, “but at the start of this year, I was planning to quit teaching. It just didn’t seem like I was having very much impact. But then I met you. Teachers live for kids like you, Rey. You’re one of the most tenacious, curious, creative students I’ve ever taught. I sense that your life outside of class isn’t easy, and I want to help however I can.  So don’t feel like you’re bothering me,” he concluded. Rey dared a glance and saw that he was blushing, too, looking down at his ice cream.

“Mr. Ren, I’m - you’re - you’re my favorite teacher ever. Of all time. You’re so smart and nice and good at things and you’re just… just the best,” Rey blurted. She fidgeted with her jeans and felt her heart pumping like it would fly out of her chest. 

“Okay then, ‘teacher’s pet’,” Mr. Ren asked, trying to contain a red-faced grin, “do you, I don't know - will you be my Valentine?"

Rey laughed nervously. "Um, yeah. I'd love to. Aw. Thanks, Mr. Ren."

"So you don't already have one?"

"Um, no. I mean, like, look at me."

"I'm looking. What’s on your phone then? Who's texting you?” 

His smile faltered as Rey shook her head and mushed her ice cream with the back of her spoon. The silence stretched on, and he reached across the kitchen table for her hand. 

“Tell me. Who is it Rey?” he prodded. "Is someone hurting you?"

“No, no. It’s not like that. Everything’s okay,” Rey protested. The words rolled off her tongue automatically, a muscle memory. I mean technically, Unkar did hit her every now and again, but she could take it and that wasn’t the issue. Her teacher’s calloused thumb ran over her knuckles and she liked how delicate her hand looked in his. 

“Is it your dad? You can tell me. You’re not getting anyone in trouble, kid,” he squeezed her palm between his fingers. Overwhelmed, she didn’t say anything. Part of her was mortified, but another part of her felt like the sun had just come out after a lifetime of rain. 

“You are so special, Rey. Look at me, sweetheart,” he urged. Her wide eyes met his dark ones. “I know you don’t know it, but you deserve to be safe. You deserve to be happy. I can help you, Rey,” he pleaded.   


Rey burst into tears and Mr. Ren came around the table to hold her. She tried to push him away, horrified to be crying on her beautiful, perfect teacher’s nice shirt. This didn’t happen in any of her fantasies. But she couldn’t stop, and he wouldn’t let go. 

After a moment, just when she started to crumple, he pulled her into his lap, rocking her back and forth. Rey squirmed. She was too old to sit in someone’s lap and it felt weird. 

“Mr. Ren…” Rey waved through the air, reaching for a napkin or something that wasn’t her teacher to wipe her nose on. His hands tightened around her. 

“What do you need?” he breathed in her ear. A wild, dizzy feeling fluttered up inside her.

“Tissues,” she sniffled. He half-rose to grab a stack paper towels off the table and held one to her face. She took it and tried to blow her nose without being totally disgusting. Mr. Ren just stroked her back.

“Are you ready to talk to me, now?” he soothed.

With a start, Rey remembered that she hadn’t checked her phone in over half an hour. She jerked up to grab it. Mr. Ren held her firm for a heartbeat before letting her go.  But there were no new messages. Mr. Ren stood behind her.

“What's going on, Rey?”

Her phone buzzed.

_ 2046 Chiltern Lot _

Rey stood, letting Mr. Ren read the fading snaptext from Finn over her shoulder. This time she got a screenshot of it. 

“We have to go there,” she whispered.

“How long have you been getting these? Tell me everything,” he demanded, face whiter than a sheet.

“It started in class,” she said, the words tumbling out. “I got this snaptext from Finn of a sun emoji. That was our secret symbol: I was Rey like a ray of sunshine? No one else would ever text me that even if they could have hacked his account. It has to be him.  And then Ms. Moran distracted me trying to take my phone, so I couldn't take a screenshot. But I knew that if I tried to explain what I’d seen without evidence, they’d say I was having some kind of breakdown and send me to detention or something.  So I ran out and waited all afternoon in the woods to hear from Finn. But there was nothing until, right before I saw you, he sent me a heart. That was it."

She turned around, facing her teacher. His eyes were big and serious, maybe even scared: “I think he’s still alive. We have to try to find him, Mr. Ren. We have to go there. He’s such a good person. I can’t stand to think of him scared or… you know, whatever they might be doing to him.”

Rey broke off into tears again. Mr. Ren squeezed her shoulder, then walked across the room to pull the blinds closed. 

“What are you doing?” Rey asked. He crossed the room again to check the locks. 

“Stay put for just a second,” he said, withdrawing a hammer from beneath the sink. “I’m going to check the other rooms really quickly. I’ll be right back.”

Rey stood rooted to the kitchen floor until Mr. Ren returned.

“All clear,” he reassured her, guiding her to a seat. “Look I don’t want to scare you and I know that this is horrible to consider, Rey, but it might not be Finn who’s sending you messages. We need to call the police.”

Rey nodded, scared but oddly relieved. Mr. Ren knew what to do. He would handle it. 

Her teacher picked up his phone and dialed, then put it on speaker so that Rey could hear. 

“911. What’s your emergency?”

“I’ve received information that Finn Tewitt, the boy who was abducted, is at the address 2046 Chiltern Lot. He may still be alive.”

“Your name?”

“Kylo Ren.”

“Your location?”

“705 East Main Street, Apartment 204.”

“Phone number?”

“This one: 208-975-1442.”

She asked a few more questions, then concluded: “Thank you, Mr. Ren. An officer will be over soon.”

“To my apartment?”

“Yes, sir. To the address you gave me: 705 East Main Street.”

“Can you assure me that officers are also going directly to Chiltern Lot?”   


“I can’t answer that.”

“May I speak to someone at the Police Department who can?”

“Yes sir, when he or she arrives at the location you just gave me.”

“Ma’am,” Rey’s teacher paced back and forth. “We need to go there now. This child might be dying. Are you going to send someone? If not, I am going to go over there myself.”

“I am advising you to stay at your location so that the officers I have dispatched can assist in this matter.” 

“Tell them to find me at 2046 Chiltern Lot.”

“Sir -”

Her teacher hung up the phone and charged out of the room. Rey gasped when he came back tucking a handgun into his jeans. Mr. Ren grabbed his car keys and a jacket, turning to Rey: “Is there anywhere safe for you to stay? Whoever is sending these messages knows who you are.”

“I’m going with you.”

“Absolutely not.”   


“I’m going!” she screamed, pulling on her coat and fighting back tears again. “I have to help him, and it’ll be safer if we go together. You - you could get hurt.”

Mr. Ren paused and then, to Rey’s surprise, hugged her so hard that all the air whooshed out of her lungs. His arms were tight around her, rubbing her back and caressing her scalp. Even through his coat, Rey could feel Mr. Ren’s racing heartbeat and his chest rise and fall. 

“Please, Mr. Ren?” she whispered. He kissed the top of her head, then his warm lips travelled to the tip of her ear. His gun nudged into her hip. Abruptly he let go. 

“No,” he said huskily. “And that’s final. The most important thing is your safety. It’s the most important thing.”

Their eyes met and Mr. Ren swallowed. Something passed between them. “I’ll be back soon,” he gravelled. “Lock the doors and don’t let in anyone who isn’t me. If the police show up, make them show you their credentials. Call 911 again to verify the badge number,” he added. 

Then he was gone.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some gore in this chapter. Not as bad as you would find in most horror movies/tv, but maybe unpleasant for some. Happy Halloween weekend!

There was no way that Rey was going to sit around in Mr. Ren’s apartment while he risked his life helping her best friend. As soon as he left the house, Rey called an Uber.

Getting out to Chiltern Lot took a good 30 minutes, eventually turning down a county road paved with gravel. The driver eyed her warily when they arrived: “We’re here. You sure about that address?”

But Rey was already jumping out of her car, jogging towards the abandoned house. Mr. Ren’s black sedan was parked nearby, and she walked gingerly around the broken slats on the front porch as the uber driver's headlights slid away.

Someone had long ago broken the lock on the front door, and it squealed when she pushed passed. Entering the dilapidated foyer, she backed against a wall to let her eyes adjust to the dark. It was freezing cold and reeked of dead rats.

 _Where is Mr. Ren? Where are the police?_ she wondered.

Rey pressed forward, hammer raised and limbs sludgey with fear. Quiet as a mouse, she circled from room to room on the first floor. The house was disgusting, full of thick, pebbled cobwebs and animal droppings. Very little furniture. It didn’t look like humans had been there in a long time.

_Thump._

Rey felt it in the pit of her stomach. Movement. Beneath her, in the basement, something heavy had just hit the floor. Her instincts screamed for her to run now from this place as far as she could and and as fast as she could. But Finn might be down there. Or Mr. Ren. It was too late to turn back. She clenched the hammer and offered a silent prayer.

Then she twisted the knob to the basement door, revealing a yellow plywood staircase down. The smell was way worse now, almost unbearable. On the first floor, the moonlight had been strong enough to see, but beneath, it was pitch black. Rey had no choice but to turn on her phone’s flashlight. She crouched on the top step and circled the light around the room below. There wasn’t much to see: a pile of rags, some cardboard boxes on a metal shelf, and a washer and dryer. All very old and very dirty.

She descended. There were five doors distributed unevenly around the plaster walls. Shielding her body as much as she could, she yanked the first door open and shone her flashlight in. The room was about a the size of a small classroom, and it seemed to be used only for storage. On initial glance, it looked empty, but there was a shelf partially obstructing her view.

As Rey darted forward to check the second row, the door slammed shut behind her. She bit back a scream, shooting her flashlight to the doorway. No one else was in the room. Whoever had closed the door was on the other side.

Rey reminded herself to breathe. Just an hour earlier, she’d been eating takeout with Mr. Ren. _I won’t die here,_ she swore. _I will murder this thing._

Rey flung the door open wide. But the room was empty. It looked exactly the same as it had a minute ago. Shaking, Rey took a breath and pushed onward.

Behind door number two, her flashlight revealed a large open space. This time, Rey closed the door behind her: no surprises. She spotted a boiler, some columns. As quickly as her sluggish limbs would allow, Rey stumbled across the room to check hidden corners. Nothing. The panic was rising like a fever, burning the top of her head. Rey inhaled sharply through her nose and bit her lip to stay focused.

She swung back into the room with the doors, reckless now to get whatever was coming over with. She went for the third door, locked. She knew that was bad, but she kept going. The fourth. She opened it.

Stench poured out, like rotten eggs and shit and spoiled meat, but a hundred time worse. It was an L-shaped room. From the doorway, she could see a large-screen tv on the left wall and that the room went back to the right. It looked lived in and Rey knew immediately that this was it. This was where it would happen. She raised her hammer in her shaking hand, and turned the corner.

Finn was sitting there, tied to a chair, but not as Rey remembered. Not as she ever wanted to see him. Bloated and leaking decay. Around him, there were melted candles and weird religious paraphernalia. Involuntarily, Rey vomited on her hands, dropping her phone to the floor. The flashlight went out, plunging the room into blackness again. She got on her knees, scrambling to find the device.

“It’s me,” hissed the dark. A cold hand seized her ankle.

Rey lashed out with her hammer and hit flesh, drawing a muffled cry from her assailant.

“Fuck. Rey, it’s Kylo,” he whispered.

“Mr. Ren!” Rey cried. They were both on the ground and she clutched him to her, forgetting that she was covered in puke. “He’s dead!” she screamed hysterically. “He’s dead. Look what they did to him.”

“Come on,” Mr. Ren pulled her to her feet. “Now. We have to go.”

He pulled her through the blind dark to the back of the room, and led her out a cellar door. Rey gulped the fresh air and stumbled onto the overgrown grass. Mr. Ren yanked her up by the elbow and dragged her forward to his car. Behind Rey, a door slammed. She looked back and saw a withered old man in dull yellow robes standing on the porch. She screamed again, falling to her knees.

“Well done, my good and faithful apprentice. My faith in you is restored.”

Mr. Ren swooped and picked Rey up in one swift motion. Over his shoulder, she could see the old man following.

They made it to the car, and Rey stared, riveted as the creature gained on them while Mr. Ren struggled with his keys. She could see its face now. There was something terribly distorted in it, like it had been human once but smashed or melted.

“Come closer, child. So much strength,” his voice carried across the cold night. Rey took a half step forward, inexplicably drawn.

Mr. Ren pried the car open and shoved Rey in, jumping after her. He locked the doors right as the horrible stranger gripped the handle to her side, thrusting the car into gear then reversing. Rey shuddered involuntarily when she felt the heavy bump and the crunch of the old man's body under the tires. Then they took off.


	5. Chapter 5

Mr. Ren pulled over on the side of the highway. Rey was confused until she saw him stumble out to puke into the gravel. She felt far away, like she was watching herself in a dream. He came back in, and put his hand on Rey’s knee. 

“I’m sorry,” he said, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. His face was wild, somewhere between terror and fury. Rey saw herself put her hand over Mr. Ren’s. They drove the rest of the way back at his apartment in silence, too stunned to speak. 

When they got upstairs, he locked the door with the deadbolt then took her to the bathroom, turning on the hot water in the shower. 

Mr. Ren unbuttoned his shirt and pulled it over his head. A distant part of Rey’s brain observed that she had never seen someone who looked like him in real life. Big strong arms and toned chest like a hero on the cover of a romance novel. He unhooked his shoes and belt then pushed his pants off. Wearing only his black boxer briefs, he stuck his hand under the hot water.

“Do you want to take a shower?” She nodded. She wanted to get it off of her. “Do you need help with your clothes?” 

Rey shook her head. She unzipped her vomit-soaked sweatshirt and folded it neatly, then pulled her flannel, henley, and her undershirt over her head, until she was wearing just her bra and jeans. Her actions were automatic, numb. Mr. Ren turned towards the sink to gargle mouthwash, and passed it to her. She took it in one hand while unzipping her fly with the other. 

Mr. Ren guided her into the shower with their underwear on. She spit the mouthwash into the tub. The listerine had made her eyes water. He turned up the temperature until the spray was scalding hot and held her, not moving, for a long time. 

Eventually, Rey reached for a pale blue bar of soap. She ran it over Mr. Ren’s chest. It seemed like the considerate thing to do. She turned him around with her hands so that he was facing away from her and washed his back too. He was shaking. Rey noticed that she was shivering also. She smeared the soap over her clothes and her body. The stench of Finn’s corpse still stuck to her nostrils and throat. She washed the inside of her nose and mouth, too numb to be self-conscious. Mr. Ren took the bar out of her hand and did the same.

He set the soap down and kissed her, holding her face in his broad hand. It was a gentle kiss, just lips touching lips. The contact tugged Rey back into her body. It hurt. The world was too bright.

“All clean?” he rasped.

“What?”

Mr. Ren turned off the water and grabbed a white, fluffy towel from the rack. He pressed it against her skin, drying her carefully and clinically, wrapping up her shoulders. 

“Come on. It’s bedtime,” he said, leading her by the hand. 

His bedroom was pitch black because the blinds were drawn closed against the outside. Mr. Ren put a hand on her shoulder to steady her, then reached around her ribs to unhook her wet bra.

“You can’t go to bed in wet clothes,” he mumbled, kissing her forehead. His mouth was warm and radiated heat through her body. He knelt down before her and kissed her pale, tight tummy, hooking his fingers in her panties and pulling them down. Then he stood and rummaged through a dresser, handing Rey a big, soft t-shirt. She shook it over her head and he put his hand on her lower back to guide her through the moonless room.

Crawling into bed felt like pawing around a thick, chewy cloud. His comforter was fluffy and clean, cool to the touch, and the pillows floated like marshmallows in cocoa. Her half naked body, still slightly damp, felt sensitive and unfamiliar in the smooth sheets. Mr. Ren pulled the comforter up around her shoulders and sat on the edge of the bed, brushing her cheek with trembling fingers.   


“You’re safe here,” he promised. “Tomorrow we will talk about all of this, but right now you just need to rest. I’m going to be in the next room. If you need anything, just call for me.”

Mr. Ren stood and closed the door softly behind him, leaving Rey lying in darkness. Darkness like the basement. Like the blind, stinking darkness of that room. Her heart started racing. She gripped the soft sheets with sweating hands. “Mr. Ren?” she whimpered, in spite of herself.

In an instant, the door opened, wedging a shard of light into the room.

“What’s wrong, Rey?”

“I’m scared,” she whispered. “Can I sleep with you?”

He paused for a moment, his silhouette frozen in the doorway, then Mr. Ren climbed up next to her, dipping the mattress. It felt better to have him in the room, right next to her. Greedy for his reassuring solidity, Rey shifted her leg over his and wrapped a small arm around his chest. He inhaled sharply, and circled his arm around her back, pressing her into his side. Something was happening inside her body. It was drowsy and feverish at the same time, like when she and Finn stole a plastic bottle of vodka from Unkar. They were such lightweights that the oily-tasting liquor had gotten them drunk after school for almost two weeks.

Thinking of Finn made Rey cry again. She had no strength to fight it, and so she didn’t. Mr. Ren settled his heavy hand over her hip, rubbing soft circle into her back. Under his breath, he was muttering something, and the low gravel of his voice warmed her from the inside like a gulp of tea on a cold morning. 

“Mr. Ren?” she whispered. When she wriggled against him, the feverish feeling sank deeper, drawing her on. She leaned her face up to his and pressed her mouth to his in her first, clumsy attempt at a kiss. Mr. Ren stilled, neither drawing away or returning her embrace. His breath was hot on her face and his fingers trembled as they travelled from her face down her neck, over her ribs to her hip. He gently uncurled her leg and turned into her, pulling her small body flush against his. It made her shirt ride up and Mr. Ren’s erection twitched against her stomach. His hands tightened. A bit of liquid leaked from his cock onto her stomach. She was pretty sure that meant that he had cum. The thought made her scared and proud at the same time.

“I love you,” he growled, licking her mouth, sucking at her neck and nibbling her ear. Rey didn’t know what to do with his profession, so she just kep chasing the high, sweet escape from reality. He massaged her waist and ass. The feeling grew tighter and stronger when he rubbed his thumb into the hollow around her hips.

“Mr. Ren, ah.” 

“Kylo. Okay princess? Please call me Kylo.”

“Kylo…” It sounded so weird to call her teacher by his first name, and suddenly Rey remembered how weird what they were doing was. And everything that had happened that night. She started to cry again, but his hands kept pulling the sweet, yearning feeling through her.

“Oh, Rey,” his breath came out hoarse. “Tell me sweetheart. Anything.”

He pressed his fingers down against the mound of her sex and Rey bucked against him, moaning. It felt so good.

“That’s my girl,” he swallowed. “Just like that.”

Pleasure and grief rippled against her irresistibly, incessantly. He kept rubbing his fingers there in a circle. She grabbed at his chest, burying her face in his neck. It circled and circled, higher and higher. She could hear herself panting with little rhythmic moans.

Nothing in her life had ever felt as good, as necessary. All her muscles clenched as the explosion overtook her, tearing a sob from her throat. Mr. Ren dipped a finger against her clitoris and Rey arced against him, clawing at his back and screaming helplessly. 

Muffling a strangled moan against her hair, Mr. Ren hugged her so hard against his body that she couldn’t breathe. He jerked and hot, sticky goo pumped onto her stomach. 

Rey hiccuped. A blissful, cool shimmer of something like relief but so much better flooded her limbs. She pulled Mr. Ren to her for a wet, slow, searching kiss and he groaned into her mouth. He wiped the cum off their skin with a corner of the comforter, and wrapped her in his arms.

“I’ll make it up to you,” she heard him say, before she dozed off.


End file.
